NFL GridIron Gab Daily Digest

Quinton Carter, S, Oklahoma, 6′1 210

Position Ranking: #1

Strengths: Played in a diverse defensive front at Oklahoma; understands all the coverages. Was frequently seen aligning the secondary. Shows a crisp backpedal with his heels low to the ground and good overall footwork. Crossover and backward movement is efficient in transition. Breaks quickly on the in and out routes in front of him to bat passes away or make the tackle on the ball carrier. Attacks downhill in the run game and drops his shoulders to fill the inside gap. Not tentative when taking on the fullback or squaring up on big running backs. Good straight line speed. Very aggressive against the run; shows good strength at the point of attack and has some striking ability. Has the strength and technique to be effective in the box and set the edge in contain. Plays with emotion and was seen encouraging teammates regularly.

Needs Improvement: Has good size but is a bit top heavy, needs to develop his lower body. Shows tightness in his hips. Doesn’t always break down quickly in space at the hips and knees to wrap-up. Makes plenty of his tackles high. Pursuit angles are inconsistent and he’ll often misjudge the outside speed of the running back, having to chase him down. More effective in two deep coverage than playing center field. It doesn’t look like he has the quickness in his break to get from the middle to the outside; has enough speed to cover the deep half. Tends to play the receiver instead of the ball, won’t gamble much even when he has leverage, content to make the tackle over the big play.

Bottom Line: Quinton Carter has a good combination of size and athleticism for either the free or strong safety position at the next level. He has the body frame to add extra weight and will likely improve his lower body size/strength with NFL training. Carter shows that he can be effective in deep coverage, the intermediate passing game, or down inside against the run. His versatility playing in Oklahoma’s diverse and aggressive scheme will also add to his value. In a draft class lacking big time playmakers at the safety position, Carter shows the upside and athleticism to develop into a very productive starter at the next level.

Draft Projection: 2nd round.

Senior writer jclombardi presents defensive players grades.

JC vs JS Report Card.

DEFENSIVE LINE:

DE/LT Green: B- vs C+. “Big Green” became a fixture at RE in the base defense and at LT in the 4-4 defense. The 360-pound big man is an unsung hero of the big veteran pickups. He ranked second on the D-line in tackles per snap (one every 9.5) and surprisingly showed some pass rush. The biggest play of his career was the Super Bowl knockdown of Ben Roethlisberger that resulted in Nick Collins’ pick-six.

DE Pickett: B+ vs B. The "Grease" made a solid shift from NT to LE leading the defensive line in tackles per snap. He has good instincts to find the ball. Also, he is great team leader.

NT Raji: A vs A-. The "Freezer" led the defensive line in tackles for loss (4½) and batted balls (3), while he tied Jenkins in sacks (7½) and he was behind Jenkins in knockdowns (six) and hurries (19½). He needs to improve at point of attack, but he is becoming a great inside pass rusher.

DE Jenkins: B vs B. Although he had another nagging injuries year, he led the defensive line in pressures per snap with one every 16.1 snaps. Whether the aging star stays or not, either way, he will get a big payday. He is a great inside pass rusher who can play DE and DT on passing downs.

DE Neal: C vs C+. With a strong start, the rookie has a promising future at right De. He can stack the point, bull rush, and get to an edge.

DE Wilson: C vs C+. With all the injuries, the rookie got to play showing improvement over the season. He ranked third with 12 pressures. He has good instincts finishing rushes and finding the ball. He finished third in tackles per snap with one every 10.67 snaps.

DE Jolly: Incomplete vs Incomplete. He can be eligible for reinstatement. His LE position has been filled capably by Ryan Pickett. Jolly easily could play RE, but the Packers have Green, Neal and Wilson for that position. If Jolly is reinstated, the Packers can give a reduced role to him.

DE Jarius Wynn: D vs D+. He had nine pressures, one for every 18.1 snaps, ranking him second to Jenkins. He may get another chance in training camp.

DT Harrell: Incomplete vs Incomplete. He was a horrible first round draft pick; forget it.

LINEBACKERS:

ILB Barnett: C vs C+: After the fourth week, an injury finished Barnett’s season. At his best, Barnett is reckless on the blitz and solid against the run. While he has speed, he is only okay coverage. Since he may not be able to play OLB in a 3-4, his future with the Packers is in doubt.  Who goes Hawk or Barnett?

ILB Bishop: A vs B. With Barnett out, LB Bishop came in producing a stellar performance. He is an authentic strong ILB starter with the menacing glare his eye reminding fans of the LBs of old days. He has good instincts. He ranked as the team’s top blitzer with one pressure every 5.5 snaps. Although he did not start until the fifth game, he finished second in tackles with 151. He simply must improve his tackling skills to become the perfect ILB.

ILB Hawk: C+ vs B-. An injured Barnett allowed Hawk to become a full-time player commanding the defense. He is not a big hitter, is a mediocre blitzer, and gets stuck on blocks.  For any game, he is good for several missed tackles and giving up several complete passes. Yet, he is strong in coverage having not given up touchdown pass in years.  Yet, his future is uncertain, since the Packers will not pay him the $10 million base salary (2011).

OLB Matthews: A+ vs A. The all-pro linebacker had a great year. He led the Packers in sacks (17) and pressures (55). He was third in tackles for loss (6½). He had six take-away plays.

OLB Walden: B vs C. Due to injuries, the veteran pick-up he started six games. He had 3½ sacks among his 9½ pressures and did okay in coverage. He improved his run defense at the edge as the season progressed. As advertised, he is a fine backup or fill-in starter meaning he will be back.

OLB Zombo: C+ vs C. The rookie free agent finished fourth on the team in sacks (five) and sixth in pressures (14). He can also hold the edge against the run. He is physical, consistent, smart, and tough. Yet, he must improve his play in space.

ILB Wilhelm: D vs D. Another veteran pick-up who mostly played on special teams. With his contract expiring, he probably won’t be back but he has a ring.

ILB Chillar: C- vs C-. Although he began with high expectations, his disappointing season ended with an injury after just eight games. He may be back for training camp.

LB Briggs: D vs D. Another veteran pick-up who mostly played on special teams, he ranked sixth in special-teams tackles with 12. He may be back for training camp.

LB Francois: D vs D. He was a free agent who can play inside or outside position, but he is stronger against run than pass. He may be back for training camp.

OLB Jones: D vs D+. He had the starting job at ROLB, but he suffered a season ending injury after week seven. He has natural leverage against the run, but his pass rusher skills are below-average.

OLB Poppinga: D vs D+. Although a decent backup, he suffered a season ending injury after six weeks. With his age and injury history, he probably will not return. We wish the "Storming Mormon" well.

SECONDARY:

CB Williams: A+ vs A. He played like an all-pro getting rave reviews. He had nine interceptions, recovered two fumbles, and forced another for a total of 12 take-away plays. He became a good tackler.

CB Woodson: B vs B+. His speed has decreased meaning he gave up big plays at times, but the all-pro cornerback led the team in forced fumbles (5), tied for first in tackles for loss (7) and was the third most effective blitzer. Yet, he led the team in penalties (12), missed tackles (20), and TD passes allowed (five).

Safety Collins: B vs B. Collins is an all-pro safety. He had five interceptions dropping five more.  He still has good speed passing at a steady stellar pace.

Safety Peprah: B- vs C+. Replacing an injured rookie Burnett, he did an adequate job. While he lacks size and athleticism, he has tough smart instincts. The Packers need him and he may compete with Burnett for the starting job.

CB Shields: B vs B-. The emergence of the rookie cornerback solidified the secondary allowing more press-man coverage. He did play like a rookie, but he got better throughout the season. He is a future solid starting cornerback.

CB Lee: D vs D+. After a solid Super Bowl performance, he improved his chances to be back after a disappointing year.

Safety/CB Martin: D vs D. A solid special-teams teams player who can play safety or cornerback.

CB Gordy: Incomplete vs Incomplete. Small raw free agent rookie CB who can run, turn and cover. He may be a sleeper.

Safety/CB Smith: Incomplete vs Incomplete. Acquired for a conditional seventh-round draft choice, he played briefly in four games and went on injured reserve.

CB Underwood: D vs D-. While he has the size, speed and talent to be a solid cornerback, he has not developed to be a good one.

CB Bell: Incomplete vs Complete. Ditto.

Safety Bigby: Incomplete vs Incomplete. After playing only six games with several players ahead of him, he will probably not be back. No big loss.

Safety Burnett: D vs D+. In week four, rookie Burnett’s season ended with an injury. As the starting strong safety, he matured and developed in the four games showing good speed and ball skills.

CB Bush: C vs C. A premiere special teams player leading in tackles with 19, forcing one fumble, drawing several holding penalties, and downing a host of punts. Unfortunately, he is very limited in the coverage game

Shaun Rogers, as we all know, was just recently released by the Cleveland Browns last week. The big nose tackle hasn't done so well in the past few seasons, totaling up 53 tackles and four sacks compared to his first season with Cleveland, having 76 tackles and 4.5 sacks.

Rogers is now garnering interest from at least one-third of the league. Most of the teams are 3-4 defenses, but would Indianapolis make sense for Rogers? I mean, when he was with the Detroit Lions, the Lions ran a 4-3 defense. Rogers did well, having a season with a career-high of seven sacks.

So the Colts, who run a 4-3, could use Rogers? He still has some stuff left in the tank even at 31 years of age. The big 350-pounder would make sense in Indy, considering the fact that this team doesn't have a true defensive tackle.

Indianapolis has struggled with defensive tackles for years and can't find a guy to plug up the middle. But they can now. Having guys like Rogers and maybe Antonio Johnson plugging up the middle could be great. Johnson and Daniel Muir have expired contracts already, and maybe to save salary cap space, they might as well not re-sign them and look for guys in free agency and the draft.

With this, I think the Colts should take a chance on Rogers and also look at the draft and the mid-to-late rounds maybe.

But having Rogers would be a huge pick-up for the defensive line. Having Rogers, Dwight Freeney, and Robert Mathis as your defensive line is huge.

What do you think Colts fans? Could Rogers fit with Indy?

Today word came out that former Bengals offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski was hired as the new QB coach in Atlanta.  Bratkowski replaces Bill Musgrave, who is the new OC in Minnesota, and will coach Matt Ryan under Falcons OC Mike Mularkey.  Mularkey and Bratkowski worked together in Pittsburgh under Bill Cowher.  Bengal fans might remember that former coach Dick Lebeau hired Bratkowski from Pittsburgh, where he was WR coach.  He was in the running for the OC coordinator position there, but lost out to Mularkey, who was TE coach.  Joe Reedy also points out that Falcons coach Mike Smith is good friends with Marvin Lewis.  These circumstances no doubt allowed the Bengals to help Brat land a gig in less than two weeks after being mildly criticized for their timing in letting him go.

Also on offense, WR coach Mike Sheppard is leaving the staff to coach quarterbacks on Jack Del Rio's staff in Jacksonville.  Sheppard has had a long-standing desire to go back to coaching quarterbacks, but had no chance to do so in Cincy with Ken Zampese entrenched.  Hobson advises that Sheppard may be replaced best with Washington Redskins offensive assistant Sean McVay.  McVay worked with new OC Jay Gruden in Tampa Bay and in the UFL.  He should be quite familiar with Gruden's offense and was reportedly called a "brilliant young coach" by Redskins defensive coordinator and former NFL head man Jim Haslett.

On the defensive side, assistant secondary coach Louie Coiffi was granted permission to interview in Arizona for a position on new defensive coordinator Ray Horton's staff.  Horton, the former Bengals safety, worked with Cioffi under Lebeau's Bengals staff, and has since been working in Pittsburgh.  Hobson suggests that David Lippincott, who assisted Sheppard last season, might get the gig.  Lippincott was also mentioned as a possibility at WR coach, but this seems to make more sense to me.

As previously reported, Philadelphia showed intesest current secondary coach Kevin Coyle for their open defensive coordinator position, but the Bengals denied their request.

These moves come on the heels of the sudden resignation and replacement of team physicians Dr. Robert Heidt and Dr. Angelo Colosimo.  The medical staff had come under fire in recent seasons with perceived bungling of player injuries. Fans and experts questioned their handling of injuries to WR Peter Warrick, RB Chris Perry, LB Rashad Jeanty, and perhaps most notably, WR Antonio Bryant.

What does all of this mean?  The jury is still out, but overall, it can't be bad.  The team was able to show some loyalty to Bratkowski in helping him land on his feet in Atlanta.  They were able to bring in some fresh perspectives to the medical staff, and they should be able to add a new WR coach that has familiarity with Gruden's system.

According to Brian Lewis of the New York Post, Jets coach Rex Ryan was at the Knicks’ 113-96 loss to the Lakers at the Garden and essentially guaranteeing a Jets Super Bowl victory. Ryan said, “there’s no way we don’t get it done next year,” and said to MSG’s Jill Martin at halftime that “next year I know we’ll win it.”

“It feeds the competitiveness in you,” Ryan said. “You’re sick that you missed out again, two years in a row. I know how important it us to this town and our fans, and how important it is to me, this football team. To come up short again, it’s a huge blow.

“But you do remember,” he said. “It drives your competitive spirit, like there’s no way, no way we don’t get it done next year. That’s how you feel. That’s how I feel. You can’t wait to get back and have at it again.”

Steelers linebacker James Harrison announced on his official Twitter account that he’s scheduled to have surgery Monday and will be sideline for four to six weeks.

Under that time table, it sounds like he’s having some kind of arthroscopic procedure.

Harrison hasn’t disclosed what kind of surgery he’s having, but he did hurt his right shoulder against the Baltimore Ravens during an AFC divisional playoff victory.

“Looks like I’ll be taking off more time then I thought,” Harrison wrote. “Ill be having surgery on Monday, should only be down 4 to 6 weeks.”

Senior writer jclombardi presents offense grades.

JC vs JS Report Card.

QUARTERBACKS:

QB Rodgers: A vs A. He ranked third in passer rating (101.2), third in quarterback rushing yards (356), seventh in the NFL in yards (3,922), sixth in completion percentage (65.7) and fourth in touchdown passes (28) while throwing 11 interceptions (nine of which came in the first seven games). His leadership, maturity and passing skills showed during the playoff games to the Super Bowl win and MVP award.  Considering former coach Sherman considered him to be a disappointment draft, he has come a long ways.

QB Flynn: C vs C+. He showed promise to be a good backup quarterback with two fine backup games.

WIDE RECEIVERS:

WR Jennings: A vs A. He had 62 catches for 1082 yards and nine touchdowns averaging 98.4 yards per game. He is a premiere receiver, steady, tough, and competitive.

WR Driver: C vs C+. He finished fourth with 565 receiving yards, while he played through injuries showing his age.

WR Jones: C+ vs C. He had a career high 679 receiving yards with 5 touchdowns.  While the critics argue that he is inconsistent with dropped passes, the truth is that entire receiving corps needs to improve in this annoying concern.

WR Nelson: C+ vs C+. He had a career high 582 yards with touchdowns with a big Super Bowl game.

WR Swain: D- vs. D. Forget it.

TIGHT ENDS:

TE Quarless: C- vs D+. For an unprepared rookie, he showed the size and talent to be a playmaker. His season totals of 21 catches, 238 yards, and 1 touchdown were far better than TE Finley's rookie year. His blocking improved over the season. Still, he had a lot to learn and needs to get stronger.

TE Crabtree: D vs D. He had four catches for 61 yards, but he is the best blocker and a good special teams player.

TE Finley: Incomplete vs Incomplete. While the future all-pro superstar started on fire, his early injury ended his season.

TE Lee: D- vs D. He had a very poor production year, but he caught everything thrown at him. With his aging status, he won't be back but he got his ring.

RUNNING BACKS:

RB Grant: Incomplete vs Incomplete.  In his first game, he suffered an ending season injury.

RB Jackson: B- vs C+. He finished with 1,137 total yards including 731 rushing (3.7) and 406 receiving (8.5). He has a future especially as a third down specialty player.

RB Starks: C+ vs B-. Although he did not play until 12^th game, he had a strong 110 carries for 416 yards (3.8) rookie season. Further, he did not cause a fumble, penalty or dropped pass. He has a future behind Grant.

FB Kuhn: B- vs C+. He finished with 439 total yards including 289 rushing (3.2) and 150 receiving (7.1). Further, he converted 10 of 13 third- and fourth-and-1 situations some with extreme extra effort. He is simply an all-around great player.

FB Hall: D+ vs C-. He missed five games due to injuries, but he ranked second in his limited role on special-teams with 17 tackles.

FB Johnson: D vs D+. His disappointing liability on special teams means his solid blocking skills on this West Coast offense may be questionably no longer be needed.

OFFENSIVE LINE:

RT Bulaga: C- vs C. As a rookie, he started the final sixteen games doing an adequate job, although he had too many pressures (33½) and penalties (10).  He made the all-pro rookie team.

LT Clifton: B vs B. Although he started shaky, he had an all-pro season. Yet, he allowed a career-high 29 1/2 pressures. He will be back for another year.

LG Colledge: C vs C-. Although his critics talk about his toughness and athleticism, he is reliable playing every game having only 23½ pressures.

RG Sitton: A vs A-. He is the finest linemen in both run and pass blocking. His 17 pressures included a team low two sacks.

C Scott Wells: B vs B+. He is the second best lineman in both run and pass blocking. He gave up 16 pressures, fewest on the team.

RT Mark Tauscher: Incomplete vs D+. The aging veteran suffered a season ending injury in the 4^th game of a shaky season. He is unlikely to return.

LG Lang: D vs D-. He was unimpressive in two backup stints at LT in Minnesota and the second half at LG in Detroit. He is tough and smart, but he must get bigger and stronger to become a starter.

C/G Jason Spitz: D- vs D-. In his only disappointing backup stint, he looked awful in the Dec. 12 loss at Detroit, got benched, and replaced by Lang.

C/G McDonald: Incomplete vs Incomplete. He is a raw rookie free agent who never played a down with a future at probably center or guard.

LT Newhouse: Incomplete vs Incomplete. He is a rookie who never played a down finishing on the injured reserve with a future at guard or tackle.